Fan's Eye View: Rafael Benitez should go now. If he's at the West Brom game, it'll be extraordinary
There will be little cheer when he is sacked, just a huge sense of relief among Chelsea fans
Nick Clark
Nick Clark is the arts correspondent of The Independent. He joined the newspaper in June 2007, initially reporting on the stock markets. He has covered beats including the City, and technology, media and telecoms and made the switch to arts in December 2011. He has also contributed articles to the sports section.
Thursday 28 February 2013
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We did not want him, his appointment proved as disastrous as feared, and the best thing for everyone is if we are all put out of our misery as quickly as possible.
The writing is on the wall for Rafael Benitez after his extraordinary rant, and it is now a question of whether he goes before the summer. It will be an amazing decision if he is in the dug-out tomorrow.
If Benitez thought the fans' singing, slogans and signs all pointing him towards the exit door were bad at a midweek game away at Middlesbrough, just wait until Stamford Bridge tomorrow.
And as he rightly pointed out, this can only be bad for a team desperately scrabbling for fourth place.
Many will feel vindicated. However tough it may have been, the stubborn Benitez made no attempt to build bridges with supporters from the off; his words on Wednesday night will be interpreted as the true regard he holds the support in.
He vowed to win us over on the field, yet the team packed with flair has looked shorn of attacking ideas, and weak defensively. His tactics have palpably failed, especially at home, and the substitutions have left us scratching our heads at times.
In the pubs on the King's Road, groups of fans have sung: "We're going to have a party" when he is sacked. But I feel there will really be little cheer, just a huge sense of relief, before the questions start again. Where do we go from here?
Hopefully when he goes the weight will lift from the players and the support enough to boost results after some of the worst months in the club's recent history.
Bad matches against West Bromwich Albion are a notorious graveyard for Chelsea managers, so Roman should act before kick-off and start the new push for the Champions League early. The end of the season cannot come quickly enough.
Nick Clark is a Chelsea season-ticket holder
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